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Kitchen & Baths

Buzz & Bella, DIY Tutorials, Kitchen & Baths

Dog Wash Room

Here is a quick look at our dog wash room… oh and yes laundry gets done there too! As a dog owner of two I really wanted a way to make dog wash days easier and this set up has been heaven for us! Our dogs are Boston Terriers and weight under 30lbs. They are not that big so do not warrant the need to hose them down outside. The bath tub was getting to be tiresome since you have to be on your knees and bent over and let alone the mess it created. So we added a little dog wash station to our laundry room and it has worked perfectly!

 

So here is the WASH room! Our pup showing you her tub… We got regular kitchen sink from Home Depot installed on top of a kitchen cabinet. The sink measures 21″ x 16″ and my dogs fit perfectly in it. We installed a kitchen sink faucet with an extendable neck to better help wash them.

These doggie tail hangers I got from IKEA and I use them to hang their leashes.

 

A little fun decor and wah-lah!

Kitchen & Baths, Master Bedroom

Master Bathroom Remodel

 

 

 

 

 

 

If there is one place other than my kitchen where I needed to have plenty of space and all the perks was my master bathroom. I have always loved staying at nice boutique hotels for the comfy beds and the awesome bathrooms. Soaker tubs, perfect lighting, large shower heads and more! When I recently underwent a major home renovation the master bathroom was an area of focus for us to create our own 5 star hotel bathroom retreat.

First – Decide on your lifestyle needs. Are you someone who likes to take baths? Only showers? Shower with your husband or wife? Need a make-up and hair area? Low maintenance? For my husband and I having both a shower and a bath was important. We both like to take baths and a shower alone or jointly to conserve water … wink wink… were important to us. Another thing that I always wanted is the idea of a “getting ready space” . The idea of showering and stepping out to my closet to select my clothes and get dressed without having to walk across my bedroom  dripping water all over my wood floors to get to my closet seemed logical to me. Good ventilation and a separate toilet room are necessary for this layout.

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Next, Select the overall look and feel for your bath. Some people love a very traditional look, others a zen spa like look… for me I wanted something classic with a modern glamorous twist. I chose to stick to porcelain tile for the marble look because dealing with yellowing marble in the years to come was not what I was looking forward to. I selected Porcelanosa marmol carrara blanco because their tile is a large format which means few grout lines. Eternity white mini strip a beautiful accent strip that I would use as my niche, backsplash and tub surround. Lastly for my shower floor I used a natural stone to make it feel more spa like.

BeforeMasterBathSketch

During….

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The After!!

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Kitchen & Baths

Best Kitchen Appliances To Buy

All I can say is I wish someone had written a post like this to share with me the low down on kitchen appliances. Selecting kitchen appliances almost became a full time job for me. It proved to be one of the single most difficult things during the remodel of our home. Choosing the right kitchen appliances is very important since it is an item in your home that you need to invest a great deal of money in and are not meant to be changed often. You spend a lot and retrofit your kitchen to accomodate your appliances.
When I say I researched appliances that is an understatement. I RESEARCHED them!! Before selecting appliances I knew little to nothing about appliances, after all I had never owned a home and my apartment in NYC had it’s own little version of appliances that looked more like they belong in Barbie’s mansion. When it came to choosing the kicthen appliances I kept 3 things in mind:

1. Affordablity
2. Usefulness & reviews
3. Design & features.
…lastly we LOVE to cook and we knew that the kitchen was going to be our splurge item.

One thing I wanted to avoid was having like 6 different brands of appliances, but I also wasn’t a stickler and needed to keep everything one brand. If you talk to any designer they will tell you to stick with one maker, but as a cook I was more interested in getting appliances that work the best and had the features we wanted.
One website I found very useful was http://www.reviewed.com/ They review all type of low to mid and a few high end appliances.

In the world of appliances there are 3 tiers of price points
Low- Budget Friendly

budget
Mid Priced

midrange

High End

highend

Luxury

luxury

When it came down to selecting my appliances I narrowed it down to the two following groups. I cared most about was being able to have the best product for the job. I didn’t care to much about staying in one brand.

Based on reviews and price this is what I would recommend should you be remodeling your kitchen and are budget conscious.

Cooktop: Thermador
Gas Grill/Oven: Samsung Chef Collection NX58H9950WS
Refridgerator: LG and Samsung make the best! Most innovative, stylish and priced well.
Ovens: Bosch
Dishwasher: Bosch or Electrolux

If you can splurge a little more then this is what I recommend:

Gas Rangetop: Miele or Wolf
Wall Ovens: Miele… wireless roast probes tell you exactly when your turkey is perfectly cooked! They also have some of the best steam ovens in the market.
Refrigerator: Subzero
Dishwasher: Miele

What I ended up deciding on my own kitchen appliance list:

Gas Rangetop: Miele KMR 1136 36″ Rangetop w/ GD
When I saw the new Miele gas rangetop that just launched in 2015 I HAD to have it! I will review it later after I have used it!
mielerangetop
Wall Ovens: Miele 30″ H 6880 BP PureLine M Touch Convection Oven… wireless roast probes tell you exactly when your turkey is perfectly cooked! They also have some of the best steam ovens in the market which I got too. I selected the 24″ DG 6600 PureLine SensorTronic Steam Oven
Refrigerator: Samsung French Door RF30HBEDBSR/AA
Dishwasher:Electrolux EI24ID50QS